How we designed the most user-friendly wearable ever.

An in-depth blog about the design process of the Dash, a personal soccer tracker and coach, and how its features can help you.

Written by Dirk van den Berg- December 5th, 2018

What you'll read:

Why we created player-centric technology, that makes it easy and efficient to coach your team

How we designed the Dash, to be as simple for both the player and the coach

What benefits you have from using the Dash & Dash App

In October of each year, Dutch Design Week takes over the city of Eindhoven as the largest design event in Northern Europe. During the event, more than 2,600 designers present their works and ideas to more than 300,000 visitors from all over the world. This year, we were extremely honored to be part of the works that were being showcased. With our designer Patrick Schuur, from ‘formfunction.’, we were given the opportunity to showcase the evolution of the Dash’s design-process and provide visitors with a story of how it came to be.

For this blog, I sat down with Cliff de Roode, DashTag’s Chief of Product, and Patrick Schuur, product designer, to have an in-depth discussion about the design process and what it took to make the Dash. Read on to find out more about specific features of the Dash and how they can bring you and your team to victory!

Q: How did the Dash come to be? What were your motivations on building it?

Cliff: The idea spawned because Epco Berger, CEO and Founder, was wondering why there was a lack of smartphone Apps for coaches and team sports. At this time, there was absolutely nothing on the market that was tailored for competitive, developing players. All that was available, only targeted pro-teams. This became our differentiating factor: the ability to fill this gap in the amateur, competitive soccer industry.

Here we see highly motivated players that are fiercely competing to become better; with coaches alongside them determined to help them get there. But, without technology there is no easy way to measure the player’s performance.

Coaches seemed uncertain about how to create tailored training sessions specifically designed to improve their player’s performance. As a result, theDashwas born. A tool that objectively records the player’s performance.

The Dash is a wearable hardware device that collects player data from the field. The corresponding App is software that can be found in the IOS App Store. As a pair, they analyse the data and present it to the players in a user-friendly way that is easy to understand. The app displays stats that provide key insights into the player’s strengths and weaknesses.

Our dream was to create a package deal focused on the players, something that had never been done before.

Q: How did you decide on the design of the Dash we currently have today?

Patrick: We were playing around with many different ideas, yet we always prioritized the idea of creating a simple, hassle free wearable device. The types of wearables that are on the market vary, from: watches, bra-like garments and devices that fit into other athletic clothing like socks & shirts etc.

After brainstorming and going back and forth to the drawing board, we had created about 40 different prototypes. Objectively, the designs wherein form follows function always had the edge. In order for us to narrow this down, we had to decide what made us stand out from our competitors.

We concluded that the best design came down to these specs:

1) No extra accessories needed to be worn. This saves time for players since they don’t have to wash a vest or remember to bring the complementary garment.

2) Snap on - Quick, easy and secure. With a simple Snap-On feature, you never have to think twice about whether it’s secure. Without having to be dependent on complementary garments, you simply fasten your Dash to the waistband of any athletic wear and GO! Also, it’s super lightweight. The Dash is 1.05 ounces (30 grams), making it virtually unnoticeable while playing.

3) LED Screen- the LED display allows for:

Personalization: While we were on the field doing research, we saw how important it was for players to be able to customise everything. With the screen, your jersey number welcomes you everytime you turn the Dash on.

Never have to guess about battery level: The Dash has great battery life of about 9 hours on one charge. After your jersey number appears, the screen shows you the battery level you have left on your Dash. This takes out the second guessing on whether you need to re-charge.

Narrative: the LED screen gives narrative feedback, engaging the players with fun and motivating headlines.

Creates an easy interface for users: The interface also highlights the button you need to press to start recording and automatically shows once the Dash is recording the session. Making it as simple as possible, for players to know that they are good to go.

TL:DR

Q: Why is our product a must-have for players and coaches?

The functional design of the Dash and the App work seamlessly to create the perfect system for performance evaluation and setting goals for player betterment. The performance stats provide a unique opportunity for coaches to tailor their practice sessions based specifically on the performance stats of his/her players. The stats will neatly indicate where there are areas for improvement.

DashTag empowers the players to take accountability for their own performance, and coaches finally get the opportunity to build their team as a whole, based on targeted training methods. This way, the Dash creates the perfect environment, feeding ambition and a hunger for improving your game.

The Dash is created to be simple to use and fun. With a spin of gamification, players will have an intrinsic motivation to improve after each recorded session.

In sum, as it is a player focused device, the data and the Dash are owned by the players. Players will be responsible to care for their own Dash and to collect their own data from each session. Making your life easier than ever, if you join our Coaches Trial you can get a taste. We will give you an overview of your players after each session, so you can understand in the most efficient way how to coach your team to victory!

Sign up for your chance to test our new cutting edge tech for your team, click below to find out more!